Title: Prayer with Vision (Acts 1:1-15)
Contents The core of today's message is about "vision". A vision is a vital force that inspires people to live. A person with a vision is living a successful life, but a person without a vision is living a lost life.
World-renowned author, educator and consultant Ken Blanchard (Praise Makes Whales Dancing) talks about the three elements of vision in his book, “Let the Vision Make Your Heart Beat” (21st Century Books). .
1) Meaningful purpose
Purpose here means knowing why we are here. In other words, when we know exactly what we are doing, we can all do our best for that purpose.
A passerby was crossing the bridge, and three men were baking bricks below. A passerby asked them.
- What are you doing now?
The three gave different answers.
- I don't know. You're baking bricks.
-I'm trying to build a church building to be built on that hill, and I'm making the necessary bricks one by one.
The first had no purpose, the second had a realistic, visible purpose, and the third had a clear vision of purpose. From this person's answer, you can predict what kind of life each of them will lead. Perhaps the third person would sooner or later become a great architect.
2) distinct value
The purpose is telling the “why”, and the value is the “how” telling the method. Values guide our choices and actions, and we live by them. It is the driving force behind the purpose.
The position of the UN Secretary-General is treated with the same level of respect as the head of state. Ban Ki-moon, who was chosen as Korea's first UN Secretary-General, said that his childhood dream was to be a diplomat. He said that he studied English hard because he thought he had to be good at English to become a diplomat. And it is said that he was always reputed to be a diligent person around him. He clearly knew what to do to achieve his vision. That vision made him diligent in his studies and diligent in his work. He made that dream come true. And it became the pride of all the people.
3) Blueprint for the future
Purpose and values alone cannot tell where we are going. A vision is to go somewhere, so it needs a destination or direction.
Martin Luther King's speech 'I Have Dream' shows what the blueprint for the future looks like.
“I have a dream. My dream is that one day the descendants of old slaves and the descendants of former slave owners will live together like brothers in the Red Hills of Georgia. I have a dream. My dream is that one day my child will live in a country where people are judged not by the color of their skin, but by the character they contain. I have a dream. I have a dream that one day Alabama will become a place where black and white children can join hands and walk together like brothers and sisters.”
From Pastor King's message, we can see what the blueprint for the future should look like. The difference in life between those who have a vision and those who don't is huge.
Jesus showed his disciples a clearer vision of the future than Ken Blanchard spoke of the vision. It was to build the kingdom of God on this earth through the disciples.
From a worldly point of view, it may not be of interest because it does not possess fame, wealth, or power. But Jesus showed this wonderful and great vision to the poor and ignorant disciples of the Galilee fishing villages and promised them the ability to carry out their mission.
However, before meeting the resurrected Jesus, the disciples were like losers in life. They had lost their purpose in life and were living day by day in anxiety and fear. Then the resurrected Jesus came. He met them and used the time of 40 days after the resurrection for the disciples to make them people of vision. So, what did Jesus do during the 40 days?
1) He met the disciples and gave them solid evidence.
(Acts 1:3) After being harmed, he also revealed himself to live for them by many sure proofs, appearing to them for forty days...
The first condition for a person of vision is to be a witness. Jesus showed his resurrection life to his doubting disciples. He personally visited the disciples and met them several times as a sure proof so that the disciples would no longer have doubts.
2) He taught about the kingdom of God.
(Acts 1:6) When they were assembled, they inquired of Jesus, saying, “Are you at this time restoring the kingdom of Israel?”
(Acts 1:7) He said, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father has set by his own authority.
(Acts 1:8) But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
The disciples thought of the restoration of Israel as a political meaning of liberation from the Roman Empire. Jesus corrected the disciples' wrong conception of the kingdom of God. That kingdom means the kingdom that God rules, the kingdom of righteousness, joy, and peace, the kingdom of blessings to the people, the spiritual kingdom that will be realized through the gospel that will be witnessed through the disciples, the church that is the body of the Lord.
3) He promised the coming of the Holy Spirit.
(Acts 1:4) Gathering together with the apostles, he commanded them, saying, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which you have heard from me.
(Acts 1:5) John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.
The kingdom of God is not established by human wisdom and power. If you move before you receive the power of the Holy Spirit, you will fail. The disciples needed to receive the promised Holy Spirit. The third condition the disciples had to meet in order to fulfill the vision was to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
4) Show your vision.
(Acts 1:8) But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
The fourth condition that a person of vision must have is to look at the vision of the kingdom of God that will be realized in the future. The disciples, who do not know how to get out of Judea, will now go out to all the nations of the world to preach the kingdom of God, and have them see a wonderful vision where the Church of God will be established wherever they go.
Through Jesus' 40-day ministry, the disciples were equipped with the conditions that a person of vision should have. After Jesus finished this ministry, He ascended into heaven in front of His disciples.
The disciples witnessed an incredible sight they could not have imagined. They were looking at Jesus as he ascended into heaven wrapped in clouds, like fools. Luke records the ascension of Jesus as follows:
Acts 1:10-11 As he was going up, the disciples were looking closely at the sky, and two men in white robes stood by them and said, "Men of Galilee, why are you standing and looking at the sky? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, is going to heaven. He will come in the same way you have seen him.
The event of Jesus' ascension marks the end of Jesus' earthly ministry. The disciples should no longer depend on Jesus in the flesh. As Jesus promised, we had to prepare for the age of the Holy Spirit.
The place they returned to was an upper room in the city of Jerusalem. There were 120 saints, including the disciples. They didn't just wait, they started praying. How did you pray?
Acts 1:14, They devoted themselves to prayer with one accord, together with the women, Mary the mother of Jesus, and the brothers of Jesus.
Verse 14 clearly shows how a person of vision should pray. Summarizing prayer in the attic with a vision, there are two characteristics.
1) Their prayers were of the same heart.
Katherine Kulman, who caused Shinyu's many transfers, said this about united prayer.
“There is a difference between praying with one person and praying with two people. It is like fire. Isn't there a difference between lighting a single twig and two when lighting a wood fire? Just as if you bring a lot of firewood and make a fire, it will burn well, so there is a greater power when several people work together to pray.”
Acts 12:5 So Peter was put in prison, and the church earnestly prayed to God for him.
The prayer of the church community is united prayer. It is praying while spitting out saliva and screaming. The Bible teaches that the foundation for a healthy church is to pray together with the members of the church.
2) Their prayers were intensive prayers.
“He devoted himself to prayer.” Concentrated prayer is immersive prayer.
1) Patience in prayer (Luke 18 - the widow's plea)
2) Prayer full of earnestness (Genesis 32 Jacob)
3) A prayer to ask by believing that you have received it (Mark 11:24)
And the prayer meeting in this attic was not a one-time thing. They prayed persistently until they were continuously answered. They cried out with one accord and persevering until the promised Holy Spirit came. If it were not for their prayers, they would not have experienced the coming of the Holy Spirit. The 120 members of the congregation gathered there, relying on the word of the Lord, and cried out with one heart.
The cry in the attic continued for ten days. I would like to say that the prayer was “a prayer with a vision.” Their prayers eventually led to the birth of the New Testament church through the anointing of the Holy Spirit.
A few days ago, there was an incident where the president of a large conglomerate wielded violence and caused a social scandal. Many young people wish their vision to be realized through the company, and if the leader at the peak of that vision is that much, it is proof that the vision in the world is hopeless.
Through the suffering, resurrection, and ascension of Christ on the cross, the purpose of the Lord is to build the kingdom of God on this earth. It is to guide people who are lost in despair into hope. It is to breathe life into the dead souls.
The only hope in this age is Jesus Christ, and the workers who will carry out that mission are Christians, and the church community is to build the kingdom of God. God has called us to do that.
To realize that vision, the saints need the experience of Mark's upper room.
(Acts 1:14) Together with the women, Mary the mother of Jesus, and the brothers of Jesus, they devoted themselves to prayer altogether.